§ Mr. Brocklebank-Fowlerasked the Secretary of State for Defence if he will publish in the Official Report a list showing the number of Service men and Service women who have applied for and been granted early release from the Services for the past five years to the earliest convenient date.
§ Mr. WellbelovedService men and women serve on a large number of different types of engagement and the three Services handle applications for premature release differently. It is not, therefore, possible to give overall figures for applications, but the number of Service men and women who actually left prematurely and at their own request during the last five financial years are as follows:
Servicemen Service-women Total 1973–74 10,009 589 10,598 1974–75 10,233 367 10,600 1975–76 7,723 424 8,147 1976–77 7,209 538 7,747 1977–78 8,840 475 9,315
§ Mr. Brocklebank-Fowlerasked the Secretary of State for Defence if he will 342W publish in the Official Report a list showing the number of Service men and women in the Armed Forces for the last five years to the latest convenient date.
§ Mr. WellbelovedThe total number of Service men and women in the Armed Forces at 31st May in each of the last five years was as follows:
Service men Service women Total 1974 287,483 12,321 299,804 1975 278,253 12,452 290,705 1976 277,047 12,877 289,924 1977 271,495 12,554 284,049 1978 262,712 12,651 275,363 These figures do not include officers or locally employed personnel.